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Yahya Abdul-Mateen II
220px | caption = Abdul-Mateen at the premiere of The Greatest Showman in December 8, 2017 | birth_date = | birth_place = New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. | religion = Muslim | occupation = Actor | years_active = 2012–present | education = University of California, Berkeley (BArch) Yale University (MFA) | height = 6 ft 3 in }} Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (born July 15, 1986) is an American architect and actor, who is best known for portraying Cadillac in the television series The Get Down, starring in the 2017 films Baywatch and The Greatest Showman, and portraying the Black Manta in the 2018 DC Extended Universe film ''Aquaman'' and Cal Abar in the 2019 HBO television series ''Watchmen''. Early life and education Abdul-Mateen was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, to a Muslim father, Yahya Abdul-Mateen I, and a Christian mother, Mary. He spent his childhood in the Magnolia Projects of New Orleans, and then moved to Oakland, California, where he attended McClymonds High School. In 2004, he went to college where he competed as a hurdler for the California Golden Bears. He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a degree in architecture and then worked as a city planner in San Francisco. He had always wanted to be an actor, later receiving a Master of Fine Arts degree from the Yale School of Drama and working as a stage actor. Career In 2016, Abdul-Mateen began his acting career with Baz Luhrmann's musical drama series The Get Down, which premiered on Netflix. His character Clarence "Cadillac" Caldwell is a prince of the disco world. He was praised for his role in the series. In 2017, Abdul-Mateen appeared in Shawn Christensen's drama film The Vanishing of Sidney Hall, in the role of Duane. It premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. Abdul-Mateen played a police officer, Garner Ellerbee, in the action comedy film Baywatch along with Dwayne Johnson and Zac Efron, and directed by Seth Gordon. The film was released on May 25, 2017. He also played WD Wheeler, a smart hand-to-hand acrobat partner, in the musical film The Greatest Showman (2017), which also starred Efron, as well as with Hugh Jackman, Michelle Williams, and Zendaya, about American showman P.T. Barnum. In 2018, he starred in the road trip drama film Boundaries, along with Vera Farmiga and Christopher Plummer, directed and written by Shana Feste; and played DC Comics villain Black Manta in the film Aquaman, which started shooting in May 2017 in Australia. In 2018, Abdul-Mateen was cast in the horror film Us, directed by Jordan Peele, which was released in March 2019. Abdul-Mateen co-stars in the HBO series Watchmen. In February 2019, it was confirmed that Abdul-Mateen was in talks to star in Jordan Peele's Candyman remake as the title character. In March 2019, it was announced that Abdul-Mateen was cast in the fifth season of Netflix's science-fiction anthology series, Black Mirror. Filmography Film Television References External links * Category:Living people Category:1987 births Category:African-American male actors Category:21st-century American male actors Category:American Muslims Category:American architects Category:Simon & Schuster authors Category:University of California, Berkeley alumni Category:Yale School of Drama alumni